The Chronic Condition

Question: Is it okay to smoke weed?

There is a certain segment of the population that cannot tell you what those  John 3:16 signs at sporting events mean and who couldn’t name 2 of the disciples, but they know one verse quite well:

“And God said, ‘Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.’” (Genesis 1:29 ESV)

Supporters of the use of recreational drugs–especially marijuana, often cite this verse to show that God is on their side in the great debate. They will often go so far as to refuse to even use the term “drug” with reference to marijuana, noting that it is just a plant.  All plants are fair game in their understanding of this verse.

So when I was a child and my mother told me not to eat those red berries off the bushes in the front yard, she was preventing me from fulfilling my God-given destiny! Who was she to restrict what God had given me for food?  I should embrace my liberty and make a random woodland berry smoothie, a wild toadstool risotto, a little poison ivy salad and a nightshade souffle.  Or. . . perhaps I should read more than just that one verse?

Before the fall of man, every plant was indeed safe and useful for food. Adam’s sin, however, affected more than just his spiritual life. Changes happened to all of creation.

“And to Adam he said, ‘Because you have listened to the voice of your wife  and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;  thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.’” (Genesis 3:17-18)

Something changed because of Adam’s sin. Instead of food being readily available, man would now have to actually work the ground by the sweat of his brow (Gen 3:19), deal with dangerous and difficult plants that offered him no benefit as a food source and be able to distinguish between food plants and non-food plants. That condition continues to this day which is why I’ll be skipping my red berry repast.

That just goes to clarify that not every plant is useful as our food just because it is a plant.  There is a wonderful diversity in our ecosystem. Cotton, for instance, is great for creating fabric, but not such a great side dish.

So where does marijuana fit?

There is no doubt that cannabis is a useful plant. It has long been the source for hemp, an incredibly versatile fiber that has been used for making rope for centuries and which is used in numerous commercial applications to this day. However, much as tobacco is primarily used for its abundance of nicotine,  much cannabis today is used for its abundance of THC, a psychoactive compound found in the plant. Most people who smoke marijuana are not doing so because of the useful fiber content –they want the effect of the drug.

It is worth noting that there have been ongoing studies about possible legitimate medicinal uses of the plant. It has shown promise in dealing with inflammation, possibly curbing diabetes and assisting with nausea for chemotherapy patients. It is also worth noting that when the active compounds are given to treat patients for their ills without the high, many patients are no longer interested despite the benefit received. That does not change the fact that this plant has the potential to yield some medicinally valuable compounds even without a buzz.

But what about that buzz? Is there anything wrong with using marijuana to get high?

The Bible scholars who knew Genesis 1:29 by heart will also tell you that the Bible doesn’t once mention marijuana. Therefore, the argument goes, it is perfectly fine.

To be clear, the Bible doesn’t specifically address marijuana, nor does it talk about not drinking poison, running over little old ladies with your car or using phishing scams to defraud trusting email users. That does not, however, mean that it does not offer guiding principles about such things.

The Bible repeatedly talks about drunkenness. At this point my pot-loving friends often remark that marijuana is not alcohol. They are correct, but the reason I bring it up is to ask why drunkenness even matters to God? What’s the big deal? The ancients weren’t operating heavy machinery. (Unless the Ancient Aliens people are correct and the Jews had nuclear powered tools.).Who cares if someone is a little–or even a lot, buzzed?

When someone becomes intoxicated (It doesn’t particularly matter if it is as a result of alcohol, marijuana or narcotics), they are no longer fully in control of themselves.  Someone in such a state has diminished capacity and cannot, according to our laws, be entrusted to safely operate a car, enter into a contract or make an informed decision regard sexual activity. That does not mean that someone has to become lampshade-wearing blotto drunk to be considered under the influence.  We all know people (And may have even been them) who ended up making decisions while inebriated that they would not have made sober, whether it is hooking up with a person at the club, sending drunk texts or revealing secrets about your friends that you wish you hadn’t.  Decisions made under the influence often have lasting impact in our lives after the buzz wears off.

The main problem with drunkenness is not the physical impact on your body, but the decrease in self-control.

This is something the Bible addresses a lot:

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age.” (Titus 2:11-12)

“ For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness.” (2 Peter 1:5-6)

“Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity.” (Titus 2:6-7)

In fact, lack of self-control is a sign of ungodliness: “For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good;” (2 Timothy 3:2-3) while self-control is a sign of the Spirit’s work: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. “ (Galatians 5:22-23) ( Note: The issue of self-control is farther reaching than just the use of drugs.)

It is good to be in control, but it is not always fun. I’m sure there were times in Paul’s life when he would have wanted to mentally check-out from the pain of being constantly beaten, mistreated and misunderstood. We all get there. Is marijuana (Or any other drug for that matter) the solution? Or does God offer other alternatives?

Paul remained in control and actively engaged his difficulties. He communicated with the Lord who loved him; he connected with the people of God who supported him and lavished their love upon him; he grew strong enough to handle the abuse of those who didn’t like him or his message. He was even able to hang out socially and enjoy great times of fellowship without the need to be chemically altered.

Whether your reason for getting high is to fit in, to become mellow, to embrace your creativity or something else, the side effect is always giving up some control over your decisions.  We just don’t make the best ones while under the influence. That’s one of the reasons that God tells us to value self-control.  Perhaps one way to foster that fruit of the Spirit is by resisting the temptation to use marijuana at all.

Got a question? Ipymin@gmail.com